


death glares and other gentlemanly interventions (commonly known as signs of being over-protective)

by owlsshadows



Series: tsukihina week [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Kamomedai Match, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-13
Updated: 2019-08-13
Packaged: 2020-08-20 17:55:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,643
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20231965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/owlsshadows/pseuds/owlsshadows
Summary: Written for TsukiHina Week 2019, Day 3: Mistaken for a Couple“Hey, Tsukishima-san, I’ve been wondering for a while…” Udai says in the break after Karasuno lost the first set to Kamomedai. His voice is quiet, barely audible in the noise of the gymnasium, forcing Akiteru to lean closer. “Is your little brother the type to talk to you about the matters of love?” he asks, eyes shifting from the court to Akiteru.“Huh?”“Is your brother and the current Small Giant in a relationship?”In which Udai Tenma has sharp eyes.





	death glares and other gentlemanly interventions (commonly known as signs of being over-protective)

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little heads up: I switched up Day 2 and Day 3 in order to upload these in chronological order.

“Hey, Tsukishima-san, I’ve been wondering for a while…” Udai says in the break after Karasuno lost the first set to Kamomedai. His voice is quiet, barely audible in the noise of the gymnasium, forcing Akiteru to lean closer. “Is your little brother the type to talk to you about the matters of love?” he asks, eyes shifting from the court to Akiteru.

It catches Akiteru off guard; both the question and the sudden closeness of his high school junior. “Huh?” he manages.

“Is your brother and the current Small Giant in a relationship?” Udai rephrases, with a mischievous glint in his eyes. His smile is sharp, and his teeth glint under the gymnasium lights. He looks dangerous, even under his long outgrown, fluffy hair.

“Kei? And Hinata?” Akiteru pulls away.

“See,” Udai points at the Karasuno bench, where the short middle blocker is reaching out to accept a water bottle from Kei. “When Hinata walked back to the team after meeting us, your little brother asked him something, most likely who I was. After Hinata’s answer, I received a death glare.”

“And?”

“It got me thinking. Why would your little brother send me a death glare.”

“He is Kei,” Akiteru laughs. “That’s probably his normal face.”

“I can distinguish a neutral face from a hostile one,” Udai replies with no doubt in his voice. “I think… Hinata was aware that I had stopped playing volleyball. On the other hand… if your brother is anything like you, he is not stupid. If Hinata really idolizes me as much as Tanaka says… I’m pretty sure that your little brother was afraid how meeting me may affect Hinata’s play.”

“Even if what you say is true… it would be entirely understandable to be concerned about a fellow teammate, no?” Akiteru asks. “So what makes you think that they are together actually?”

“Glances, Tsukishima-san,” Udai hums, sparing Akiteru one to demonstrate. For a split second, Akiteru gets lost in the deep grey pools of Udai’s eyes; sour memories come to the surface and a fire ignites in him that he had thought was long gone. “The way someone looks at another can tell a million things.”

Udai holds eye contact for a moment too long, gaze lingering over Akiteru’s lips before he turns his attention back to the court where the players are taking refreshments before the second set.

“I’ve always been interested in the glances players exchange during the game. It’s telltale of their dynamic, sometimes even helps to pinpoint their weaknesses.”

“Now, I wonder why I was not more afraid of you,” Akiteru chuckles. 

Remembering is another kind of beast, one more dangerous than closeness; it brings forth memories Akiteru spent years to heal from, memories that serve as kindle to the fire in him.

“Your brother,” Udai continues, unfazed by Akiteru’s comment, “keeps his eyes on his diagonal partner. He observes Hinata’s condition, and positions himself accordingly, on and off the court. You’ve seen it just now, didn’t you? Hinata had no water, so your brother simply handed over his.” 

“That kind of thing can happen to anyone,” Akiteru replies. “Sharing a bottle is not that intimate between teammates…”

“You could say that,” Udai smiles, “but Karasuno’s current Small Giant is on the watchout too. Look at him, he gravitates closer to your brother just as we speak.”

“They have a strategic meeting,” Akiteru points out.

“They don’t have to stand next to each other,” Udai argues.

There’s a spark in his eyes that’s hard to overlook. He challenges Akiteru, with his face slightly tilted to the side. Akiteru can’t fight back a smile, which quickly gets mirrored on Udai’s face. It reminds him of the old days, when they were the ones playing on the court, and when Udai had made it his personal goal to rile Akiteru up.

“Look,” Akiteru says as the players walk up to the court, taking their new positions to start the new set. “They changed places. They were standing together for this purpose.”

“Hn,” Udai replies, leaning onto the railing. “They’re making the exact same pose. How cute–”

“What are you trying to achieve by this?” Akiteru asks. “You don’t really have any reason to think they are together, do you?”

“Why? Would you mind if they were?”

“No. Just...” Akiteru finds himself lost for words, looking deeply in Udai’s eyes.

“Just?” Udai raises a brow, and Akiteru’s heart skips a beat.

The boy draws him in, and like moth towards the light, Akiteru gravitates towards him. 

It’s a trap, blatantly laid out for him. And he falls. Willingly.

“I don’t think Kei would be the type to mix love and club activities.”

“Hn,” Udai hums, in that annoying all-knowing tone that makes Akiteru’s skin crawl. “Gut feeling,” he continues, straightening up. “Watching them reminds me of… us.”

The end of his sentence is so silent Akiteru doesn’t actually hear it – his brain fills the gaps for him. His heart screams. It’s unfair of Udai to tease in such a roundabout way, to be so blantant but shy about it at the same time. 

“I was not a regular,” Akiteru shrugs.

“We both know that the reason was not your lack of skills,” Udai replies immediately. Sharp grey eyes meet golden brown, shorter fingers brush over longer ones. “Have you ever told your brother about it?”

“No.”

“Good,” Udai nods, pulling his hand back. 

The ghost of his touch leaves Akiteru with a lonely feeling.

Tanaka Saeko shouts excitedly behind them, and Udai makes a content noise. “They scored.”

Akiteru forces himself to turn his eyes back to the court, but he can’t help but feel the presence of his junior to his left; a tuft of black in the periphery of his vision, reminding him of times he thought were well behind him now.

He sees the same court before him, few years back. He sees a player wearing the black number 10 jersey, scoring another point. He is reminded of the way his heart squeezed, aching for Udai Tenma.

Akiteru shakes himself, forcing himself to come back to the present and to watch his little brother and his team taking on one of the top teams in the country.

The game picks up after the change in positions. Hinata’s broad attack has Udai in awe; the sound of his excited cheer resonates deep down Akiteru’s core. Akiteru doesn’t dare to tear his eyes away from the match, not now that its pace picked up, but his hand, ever so slightly, moves to the left on the railing.

_ Gut feeling. _

He ponders.

*

Udai shows some resistance to walk down with them to greet the team, but with Saeko on one side and Akiteru on the other, he is forced. Akiteru watches as Karasuno’s old Small Giant meets the new one, with a sense of pride puffing up his chest.

“Giant-san!” Hinata exclaims happily. “Did you see that? Did you see my last feint?”

“I did,” Udai replies, with just as much excitement as Hinata.

“To think he stopped playing,” Kei says, and Akiteru jumps from the surprise.

“Kei! When did you… you were back there with Tadashi just now.”

“I was,” Kei agrees, watching Udai and Hinata talking mostly in sound effects. “But you looked so lovestruck it made me want to come over to tease you.”

“Lovestruck?” Akiteru asks.

Kei flashes a sharp smile at him, eyes piercing with something akin to condescending. It riles Akiteru up. Brings back some of the edge he’d never quite shown around his little brother. The cheek he used to have around Udai, to mirror the teasing of his black-haired menace, returns with full force as he leans close, smirking at his brother.

“Not only our physique is similar, but our taste too, I guess?”

“Huh?” Kei’s eyes go wide, a vivid blush creeping up his face. 

It’s more than enough for a reply, and Akiteru snorts in surprise. Would Udai’s eyes really be so sharp?

“Little brother!” Udai shouts as he walks over with a skip in his steps. He hooks an arm around Kei’s shoulder, dragging him down to his face level. “That thing when you countered Hoshiumi’s blockout? That was pure genius. I like your guts.”

“Ugh,” Kei grumbles in reply as Hinata joins in, fishing for more praises for himself from his idol.

Akiteru can’t not notice it now; the way Kei’s eyes follow Hinata, the way he frowns as the short middle blocker lights up from Udai’s compliments. He can see the way Kei’s hands fist, just as well as he sees that his little brother shrugs off Udai’s arm in a way that puts space between Udai and Hinata, not Udai and himself.

Strangely, seeing his cold and detached little brother being jealous fills him with pride.

“Congratulations,” Akiteru says then, and he laughs at Kei’s annoyed expression. “You are now in the best four!”

“Best four!” Hinata echoes as one of the second years ushers him towards the changing rooms. Akiteru now sees the slight shift in Hinata’s eyes, too, as he positions himself in an angle to see Kei, even as Kei moves away to walk by Tadashi’s side. He watches as Hinata, in a movement so natural if he was not already suspicious he might not had paid attention to it, stretches his arms, almost brushing the arm of Kei.

“They’re definitely in a relationship,” Udai states once the team has disappeared in the corridor. “Even if they keep it a secret from the team, the keen eyes of Detective Udai can see through all schemes.”

“If you say so, Detective Udai,” Akiteru laughs. He’s not willing to share his own findings with Udai, not just yet. To admit Udai was right, Akiteru first needs a beer. Or a few.

And maybe, just maybe, a continuation of that feather-light touch.

**Author's Note:**

> TsukiHina is not dating (yet).
> 
> Edit: well, this didn't age so well. Good thing I tagged it as canon divergent I guess^^"


End file.
